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[Kyla: Angel Grove: Street]


((Gaagh! Thne guys on the King Quest are in troubles!!! crying ))

Figures, just when it seemed things might level out on the playing field... it seemed they would lose their chance to help Terra. The sound of her painful scream, her anguish, pained Kyla to hear it. Clearly it was as they thought; she was in just as much pain as they were. One way or another they had to save her-
But first, time to save those they could save- NOW!

Her final attack was tricky, but she weathered it with reasonable ease.
At Seymours signal, the Artistic Gunner ran at a mad dash towards them. At first it seemed Kyla’s book was still the tool of choice as it was summoned, but just as quickly as it manifested, she gripped the cover and tore it in two at the spine! The two pieces reshaped and became a pair of guns- Amy's guns! Or at least something very close.

Kyla was marveling at the significant difference in her speed and agility- and she owed it all to Amy! In a flash she was running, then crouching, then leaping. Airborne so easily, and as she flipped right over her targets, Kyla took aim and unleashed a barrage of bullets from right over their heads!

They rained around them into the ground, ground breaking at their impact around their feet.
It all seemed like a waste when she landed across form them opposite side, all that shooting and not a single hit, but that wasn't the end of her move.
With a snap of her finger, all the holes lit up into solid lines that connected into a perfect copy of the image she had prepared before.

Please... save them.

The shield activated, it was at the very least three times the size, and it rose up and out of the ground and from below and all around them. Translucent petals forming out of thin air, they closed around the three of them, once, then again. Two shielded overlapping from top to bottom then reversed in direction. The completed chamber rose up into the air a few meters, Kyla moved into position beneath it and fired a single shot inside, this bullet was bright and ignited as it entered the shields without breaking their surface-within it seemed fireworks were going off inside.

Again, Kyla was pressing her will over them. Engulfing the three targets in her will to contain them and now with Amy's White Magic, she was hopefully infusing them with what they needed to be free of whatever was controlling them.

Focus- Purge what doesn't belong. Everything that is who our friends are- is the only thing that can remain inside... everything else.. GET OUT! LET them GO!

Kyla wasn't sure if even this approach was enough- whatever else anyone else here wanted to do- now was the time to cast it! She had no doubt they wouldn't get another chance at this. They needed to break the link that bound their friends to this darkness.

"I-We'll hold them- for as long as we can!"

Kyla pressed her will in closer around them. The shields were rotating around them and resonating with her thoughts, their feelings.

' Come on! Come back to us! Wake up! Beatrix! Yuffie! Axel! Snap out of it! You don't want to fight us! You don't want to hurt us do you?! Wake up! '

Jacob ll Dreams

As Alice clenched her fist and everyone lifted off the ground, Jacob was strangely calm. He was still dazed. He looked at his two hands: they were coated in dry blood and dirt. He wiped his sweaty brow with a sweaty arm. It really didn't do much, but it was more out of reflex to stop the gentle tickle. He looked at Alice, the darker, sinister version of the cute, petite flautist next to him. Noelle was staring at him. He closed his eyes slowly to blink, but they didn't open. It hurt too much.

Jacob open his eyes again, and again, it was if he was watching a movie. Every mistake he had made over the past week. Every moment of weakness and failure. Jacob should have done more. He could have saved Quistis and himself much earlier. He could have ended the fight with the Chaos avatar, to prevent James and Kyle and Joe and everyone from getting hurt. Jacob should have ended the nobodies. He wasn't fast enough. Flashback after flashback with a played out in front of him, with large red marking of alternate paths and trajectories scribbled over top of the fighting, showing every last mistake....mis-thrown daggers, attacks that should have moved closer to the center of mass, errant slashes, misdirections and bad footing. Jacob was mad at himself for not being able to hold his own in any of the fights. He couldn't help his friends. He was worthless. Jacob wished he could just leave and be less of a burden to those around him. They all looked at him like he was stupid...reckless...they worried about him, and it made Jacob feel like s**t.

His head lulled back around his neck.

[Dani :: Angel Grove :: Outside the Church]
Dani smiled as Terra had been hit by her new attacks. It seemed like everything was starting to finally work. The only problem was that Dani did not pay attention to Terra firing off a huge Ultima right at the group. When she did notice it, it was too late. Dani soon waited for the huge amount of pain that was going to be inflicted on her.

Dani soon felt a burst of pain and bit her lip. It was not as much as she thought it would be. She noticed that a huge shell had appeared around her and smiled. “Thankyou,” she said out loud to the man who used the shell. When Dani turned back around to attack Terra, she was gone.

Dani then stood up and watched Kyla drive with Amy and start to use their combined power against the 3 canons turned enemies. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see another person use electricity on the ball as well. Dani then figured out a plan in order to help Kyla.

Dani lifted up her arms once again and concentrated on the inside of the shield itself. Tiny geysers started to shoot out water from the inside of the shield and hit the 3 canons. With the water inside, the electricity that the unknown person had thrown would make contact with the shield and hopefully hit the water as well. Since electricity was conductible, it would cause even more electricity and hopefully shock the 3 canons.

{James : Caribbean Sea : Brig of the Dutchman}

{{Cue: The Call of Ktulu}}

If things had been bad before... they got worse really quick. As Joe spat in Ajora's face everything seemed to go dark and a shiver went down the corsair's spine as Ajora's dress sphere changed from the white suit it had been to black with wings, which was all he could really see given that he was on the opposite side of the hall. The wings vanished shortly after but the fade to black did not go away. Ajora was pissed off that much was evident. He called over to someone who the corsair did not recognize, however judging by Ajora's words Joe did.

The next thing he knew the corsair was raised into the air against his own will, held there by force that he knew all too well as psychokinesis and he could only assume at the hands of the young woman who had appeared. As Ajora basically probed their memories dropping hints the corsair picked up on it, the little girl who had disappeared sometime during Halloween Town... she had changed this much... how?

His fists clenched as he heard what Ajora had in mind he was going to make Joe lose an eye...

"No! Don't do it!" He yelled, trying to break the psychic force that held him airborne.

In the end there was nothing he could do, nothing to drown out the yell of agony that escaped from Joe as his cheek and eye were burned by acid and poison, then the bo-wielder was tossed against the wall and the corsair felt the force release, causing him to land on the wooden floor, his knees buckling slightly due to the weight. Noelle's remedies had worked to seal the wounds, but they were still sore. His fist immediately going into the wood in rage at what had just happened and he had been unable to do anything. Kyle then shouted at Ajora telling him to let them go. The twisted replica's reply did not surprise the corsair in the least. The original deal was off, which meant the replicas could now do as they pleased with them.

"This is not good..." James said, somewhat fearfully, worried about Joe, and now definitely worried about his fate seeing as how he was in a cell of his own.

{Leon : Angel Grove : City outside of church}

Kyle's attack had been enough to send Beatrix into the air, thus the Fated Circle was useless in terms of damage and as Leon came to a halt there was nothing he could do as suddenly he heard a scream and then a massive blast of energy slammed right into the gunblader, knocking him off of his feet yet again. the damage was thankfully reduced as the Shellra spell surrounded him, Dani and Bobbi. The young woman disappeared leaving only, Beatrix, Axel and Yuffie. He wasn't sure what to do as he watched the sheer display of power from the drive as Kyla seemed to hold them within her will, trying to accomplish something while a few more went in for the attack.

[Azrael: Angel Grove/Hawaii: Secluded Beach]

"...Can't they keep the destruction and mayhem down? I swear...."

Azrael was lounging on a blanket, his 'dress sphere' having become some blood red swimming trunks, and having stolen a pair of designer sunglasses from an abandoned store. No one would miss them. Not that he cared, of course.

Elleon had abandoned him for some reason, Kai off doing who knows what, and Azrael was relaxing, sun warm, Bal-Hur stripped bare and lying on his belly, arms folded under his head, muscular back and backside and legs bared for the world(and Az) to stare at and enjoy. And mildly bored.

"What to do, what to do...?"

Thinking, Azrael stared at Bal-Hur, remembering how he was created, and Azrael's bored 'pout' shifting into a smile.

Trailing his fingers down Bal's back, Azrael nodded to himself. Yes, that's what he'd do. He'll make himself something else. And he focused that thought, filled it with power, anger, and lust, and a long, thin line of darkness formed along the sand by Azrael, taking shape rather quickly.

It was a snake, pure and simple. Black, shiny scales, with crimson and poison green diamonds going down it's back with a red green red green pattern. It darted it's black tongue out, smelling and tasting Az's outstretched arm before slithering onto it and crawling across the male, flicking it's tongue on his face before crawling onto Bal-Hur as well. It was a long snake, large, akin to a young anaconda.

"Bal-Hur, let's do something."

Azrael's laughter carried out across the crashing waves.

[Carribean Sea ~ Brig of the Dutchman]

Noelle's heart leapt as she felt herself being lifted from the ground and turned back around to face the event. Fighting against it was no good, all she could do was squirm and steel herself as things proceeded. She was past the point of being able to process how Alice was fitting into their equation, the only thing she could think or feel was fear and worry. The agromancer tried to keep strong, but felt herself becoming fainter with every moment that passed. This only grew worse with Joe's pain-filled cries. She could hardly bear it and tried to avert her eyes. Her gaze landed on her Replica in the corner, the dark copy soaking in every moment of the earthlings' torture. There was a fire in her eyes that Noelle had only seen once before--she knew to fear that look. Elleon's shadowed lips were drawn into a smile, her fingers tapping along her hips with her hands pressed against her sides. As the blonde turned her head, she caught Noelle's empty, horrified stare. Her smile widened. It was clear that she hated to tear her sights away from Alice and Joe, but it was time to indulge in a different side of the experience--the one of a horrified little girl, powerless against everything. It was like seeing the five-year-old that she was so many years ago, that hid in the corner while she watched her mother and step-father duke it out in their small apartment. Mommy can't protect you right now . . . because mommy can't even protect her self.

When Noelle's legs touched back to the wooden floor, her legs didn't hold her, and she let herself fall to her knees. But she would not break her comatose stare with her Replica. It was almost as if she couldn't look away. She was weak and vulnerable, but despite that, wouldn't stop combating the evil that came from her heart. Elleon started mouthing words to her, being sure to overemphasize the way her lips moved so she could catch what she was saying to her. Reading lips was an art Noelle had developed long ago, but with the restoration of her hearing she no longer depended on it, and so the skill faded over time. What she was saying seemed to click in her mind, bringing her back to the present. -You'll never be good enough . . . never.-

The blonde looked up at Anthony as she heard him bellowing and kicking at the bars. Noelle shakily stood, looking around at everyone with the same empty expression she had been staring at Elleon with. When she looked over at James her face finally showed fear. They were all like caged animals waiting for the slaughter.

[ Yuffie ; Beatrix ; Axel ; Seymour : Angel Grove : City Streets ]

The trio lifted up their guard instinctively as the gunner slash pictomancer hopped over them, firing wildly at them. However, nothing struck them, causing them to slowly turn, ready to take out the person, three to one...

Only to be suddenly enveloped in a large, magic shell, forcing them to remain in one position. When the calming, restorative magics kicked in, everyone likely expected the trio to at least appear to get better...

They didn't.

Immediately, the three possessed fighters began to let out pained screams, gripping their heads, pulling at their hair, falling to their knees. The geysers and the electric attacks didn't help, onyl causing them to shout louder. When Alan gripped at the 'enchantments' and attempted to shred them apart, the yelling and cringing increased three-fold.

Maybe they would have to get worse before they got better, they might have thought. Well... that would have been wrong, too.

Though it was hard to tell from afar, the three prisoners had slowly begun to bleed from their ears. And if that wasn't enough, wisps of black and white energy began to waft up from Axel- a familiar scene to anyone who'd played Kingdom Hearts 2.

They weren't helping the trio... they were killing them.

[Kyla: Angel Grove: Streets]
The moment they started screaming, seeds of doubt began to germinate inside Kyla’s mind, even Amy’s confidence wasn’t enough to dispel it as their screaming grew. The final telltale sign was of course, when Axel’s form began to slowly dematerialize.
She could see it clearly from below; since the chambers were see through, like glass.
She stopped the restorative magic flow almost the same time Alan screamed for them to cease their firing. The gun in her hand disappeared, but her hand remained aloft, keeping the chambers active, just not charging Amy’s white magic anymore.

“...I...I can hold them, but-...” Kyla sounded uncertain, and very concerned, she watched Axel closely, wondering if his injuries would get worse.

“If we can’t sever the control, counter-mind-influence doesn’t work, and healing just kills them- then what?! Wait for Ivan Ooze to be destroyed? Is that it!?”
Kyla shut her eyes unable to look at their cringing forms anymore.

Calm down. They’re not dead yet. Yes, they’re not dead yet.

But just thinking she only ended up putting her friends in further pain...

Her Plan failed.
She failed. She would always fail...
She could never create a plan that would work.
Kai was right. She was nothing but a-

!! Stop !! Feeling sorry for yourself wont solve things! think of something else!

Kyla tried to submerse her guilt in more of Amy's influence.

“I can make restraints.” She said a bit more calmly as moisture leaked from between her squinting lashes.

"I'll make whatever I can- but Axel can teleport eventually, except from inside these things, umm- unless there is something else that can cancel out that trick. When- IF they heal, they'll also fight against any normal restraints."

Did this mean she'd have to just hold them indefinitely until the Rangers defeated Ivan?